


Mileena's Vengeance: Wrath Reborn

by KyojiroKagenuma



Category: Mortal Kombat (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, Rebellion, Resurrection, Revenge, Sisters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-22
Updated: 2020-10-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:47:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27141973
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyojiroKagenuma/pseuds/KyojiroKagenuma
Summary: The new peace brought on by Kitana's rule is painfully short-lived. Mileena is resurrected through the use of Shang Tsung's dark magic. The rebellion is reignited, and Outworld is once again thrown into chaos. Learning from her mistakes, Mileena is eager to wreak her righteous retribution, and pry Outworld's crown from her sister's cold, dead hands. To do that, she'll need allies.
Comments: 7
Kudos: 7





	Mileena's Vengeance: Wrath Reborn

**Author's Note:**

> In honor of Mileena's return to the game, I thought it could use a story to go along with it.
> 
> This AU diverges from the canon set by the end of the MK11 in multiple ways, including but not limited to:
> 
> The canon aftermath never happened.
> 
> Kano was never killed.
> 
> Mileena is resurrected, not brought forward in time.
> 
> No past copies of present living characters in this story. There can only be one.
> 
> Co-written by my pal Angel Wolf, who is also on this site. He wrote the fatality death (You'll know it when you see it) and the bulk of the action sequences.

Jade stood at the balcony, overlooking the sprawling valley below from Kotal's newly acquired mountain home. It was beautiful, if not a bit boring. Far away from the breadth of the capital city, the manor was surprisingly remote for someone who was considered such a man of the people.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Jade asked Kotal, turning to see him waiting just outside the door. "I'll visit you whenever I get the chance, but I have to imagine this place will get dreadfully boring."

"Are you familiar with the expression, 'may you live in interesting times?' Well, I have. Enough for ten lifetimes. These days, dreadfully boring is exactly what I've been looking for," Kotal explained, joining her to watch the sunset.

"Well, I suppose you've earned it more than anyone. Kitana would have valued your guidance, you know."

"I am not leaving the realm, Jade. I'll be here if I'm needed. Besides, Kitana has you to look after her," Kotal added. "I couldn't think of a better guide if I truly tried."

Jade let out an audible sigh. She rested both arms on the stone railing, "I so do wish I could stay longer, but I'm afraid duty calls. Kitana won't be happy at all if I'm away for too long."

"Relax, my love. I'm not going anywhere."

Jade smiled softly, raising her hand to cop his left cheek, looking into her lover's eyes.

"You better not."

* * *

It had been hours since Jade had departed, and night had long since fallen on the picturesque mountainside. The structure, though not nearly as heavily guarded as the royal palace, had no shortage of security. To even the most skilled teams, infiltration would be all but impossible.

Two guards stood watch outside the front gate, watching the road. There was only one path this far up the mountain, and they were on it. Anyone coming would be seen from a mile away, even in the dark, so there would be plenty of time to alert the whole manor if someone was spotted.

Unless, of course, that person just happened to be the fastest living thing in existence.

One of the guards thought they saw a blur out of the corner of their eye, but by then it was too late. Not a second later those eyes were removed from his body, along with the rest of his skull, courtesy of a Black Dragon hookblade. Before the second guard even realized his friend was dead, he found the pointy ends of both the assassin's swords buried in his chest. The soldier coughed up a mouthful of blood, collapsing to the ground. Kabal pried both weapons from his victim's ribcage, stood back up, and spoke into a device on his wrist.

"All clear."

A few moments later, four more Black Dragon operatives appeared from the night, joining Kabal at the gate. Jarek, Tremor, Tasia, and Kano himself.

"I don't think we have much time before the rest figure out something's wrong,' said Kabal, wiping the blood from his weapons.

"Well, let's not waste any time then," said Kano, looking at the katana wielding assassin by his side.

"Tasia, you know what to do. Up and over."

The woman nodded silently, before approaching the stone wall. She leapt as high as she could, planting both feet on the wall and running the rest of the way up. She latched onto the top with both hands and hoisted herself up and over in one fluid motion. Kano and the others waited patiently for her return. The sounds of blades slicing through skin and blood gurgling last breaths were heard just beyond the gate. Not ten seconds later the doors creaked open, with Tasia standing in the center. Two more guards lay slaughtered at her feet.

"Attagirl," Kano smiled, before stepping into the fortress with the rest of the group. "Alright, split up and find the big blue bastard. Remember, we need him alive."

"Pretty sure he's green, boss," Kabal replied.

Kano scowled at the man, "Whatever, just find the stupid cunt."

And they set about in different directions. While Kano and Kabal took the eastern and western fronts respectively, the behemoth ninja Tremor trekked in through the manor's parlor. He snuck through the place, moderating his every movement to be as quiet as he could despite his incredible size. He came to the edge of a room and heard rattling coming from around the corner ahead, so he held his hands in anticipation, preparing for anything. Reaching the edge of the wall, he peered his head and saw a Tarkatan mongrel fiddling his arm-blades against the wall out of boredom. Seemed the guard had gotten bored of his post. Tremor's tremendous hand clasped the back of the creature's head and plowed it forward to the wall. The skull cracked like an egg shell in his hand. The lone guard slumped down, headless, his remains smeared across the stone.

Onward the ninja went, steadily forging a path deeper and deeper into the home. Another guard appeared from the corner of the next halfway. Tremor lunged forward, tackling and grasping the poor soul's neck in his arms. Tremor squeezed until it snapped, and left the body as it was, pressing on. He continued, coming upon an unlit hallway near stairs, so he hugged the left side of the walkway and stayed steady. The air seemed to grow colder around him, blowing frigid across his stone-like skin. Was there a draft within the structure? Outworld was a place of very fine, albeit slave-crafted homesteads, surely a great leader such as Kotal would not be subjected to inferior construction. He came upon a rest area in the hall that was unlit as well, and he heard an object hit the floor further in the distance that caught his attention, down there in the darkness well past the rest area to his right.

That was when Kotal struck him.

The green beast tackled the killer from the side through the wall, the partition giving way, and out into the courtyard they fell. Briefly phased, the mercenary rolled through grass and felt murderous hands clasp around his thick throat. Above him was the blood god himself, Kotal Kahn, strangling him for all his worth. The ninja's flesh hardened against the Osh-Tekk's fingers and soon the man was able to force the old emperor off him.

Kicking up, Tremor found himself taking an immediate punch, Kotal's knuckles crushing into his cheek, before a knee met his midsection and a left hook brought him back down. Staggered, the ninja barely had time to react as the warlord brought down his mighty weapon, the macuahuitl. The blackred club crashed against Tremor's forearm and stopped dead in its tracks, blocked, to Kotal's surprise, by the peculiar bruiser's earthen melding, stone coating the flesh thicker than it had before. Forced back a few steps, Kotal struck again with his obsidian tipped club. Tremor knocked it from his hands, leaving it scattered aside as he pummeled the Osh-Tekk with sledgehammer punches, beating the sun god's chest like a wardrum over and over, a fist for the flesh like a stone for the bruise.

The ninja brought forward his boot into the resistant warriors chest, but couldn't break him. The lines in Kotal's flesh glowed and turned red, demanding blood. He surged forward his right hand and a bright light consumed Tremor's eyes, concussively blasting his head back with unexpected force, and he next felt a fist pound into his stomach, and Kotal struck in a flurry that cracked the rocky skin of his opponent, before grasping the large man by the throat and hoisting him over his head. In rage, he threw Tremor across the yard and the man landed by a statue in a patch of now-crushed garden. The warrior marched to his prey as it stumbled to stand, and with confidence, he pushed forward a sickle taken from his waist-belt and prepared to gut the ninja much as he would a boar.

Shaky, but on his feet, the bruiser exhaled haggard breaths as he caught and redirected the warrior's stab into the pedestal the statue sat on. Clasping the back of the warlord's head, Tremor shifted his weight and shoved Kotal nose-first into the stone. It crumbled instantly as his face crashed through it, and he grunted, roiling back with a hand at his face as blood poured from his left nostril.

Holding his cracked stomach, the ninja clenched his whole body angrily and the stone across his body grew black and began to glisten, heat rising from his body and emerging through the cracks in his metamorphic flesh as the rock grew molten and the wounds closed. Turning back, the ninja hurled his right palm forward, a burst of fiery stone blasting Kotal across the face and backwards over the shattered statue to the ground. Sparks flew and set the grass alight, flames starting small but quickly growing and spreading. The ninja grasped the warrior off his back and hoisted him to his feet, clasping Kotal's dazed head within his hands and squeezing hard against the skull.

Kotal growled and slashed the sickle still clasped in his fingers across the side of the ninja's throat and tore a gash that made him choke and sputter. A kick to the side sealed the deal. Releasing the warlord's head, Tremor fell to his knee and grasped the side of his neck, bleeding hot boiling steel that steamed against the grass beneath them as it dripped to the ground. Kotal grasped the ninja by the back of his head and held his divine decapitator to the front of the big man's gullet. The flames had become quite bright now, illuminating them in the dark almost as a circle. A smile graced the old emperor's lips.

"Too bad all that work only went to waste," he said.

Then came the distinctive sound of a metal searing through flesh, and Kotal's eyes went wide. Jarek had come from behind, and buried half his axe blade in Kotal's back. With a tremendous roar, the Kahn thrust backwards with his arm, striking the thug with a powerful elbow. Kotal tried to cleave Jarek with the sickle, but molten hands grasped his waist and forced him out of reach. Tremor bent the warlord sideways and summoned earth from his hands, shooting a spike through the Kahn's cheek and then through the side of his knee below, before placing his hands together and surging forward another weary blast of metallic rock from his hands, burning Kotal.

Jarek jumped to his feet, swinging his axe and slashed the inside of the warrior's wrist, forcing him to drop his sickle to the ground. Himself bleeding from the side of his head, Jarek let his axe go and punched the warlord across the cheek, but it felt like striking the side of a mountain. Kotal grasped Jarek by the throat and released another surge of hard light from his other hand that knocked back the ninja's attempted support, the lines on the old emperor's skin now brimming brightly gold.

"You will burn for this, cretin," the Kahn said, and from the sky came a singing light that stung at Jarek's skin, the warrior's grasp keeping the man stuck in place.

Earth rose beneath him and enclosed itself around his feet. Kotal looked down to see Tremor's work at play and found himself locked into place. Jarek screamed as smoke rose from his cheeks, and he struck the Osh-Tekk's infallible arm, begging relief from the mystic magik frying his flesh. Out of concern for his legs, the sun god's light faded somewhat and his grip loosened as Jarek's boot rushed forward into Kotal's ribs.. The warrior staggered backwards, dual stone casts wrenched tightly around his legs shattering and stabbing his flesh down to the bone, leaving him freshly drenched in agony. Tremor grasped Jarek through the light and tore him from the sun's wrath as Kotal remained standing, enraged and bleeding and burnt.

The warrior charged, enraged despite his ragged legs, and a wind descended upon the flames that came from a blurry figure, peppering the sun god with bodyshots constantly, machine-like in precision and no less prominent in power. Kabal leapt backward from the warrior as he blasted light once more, just missing the nimble thug by a few hairs' margin. Tremor's fist struck the old emperor's face next and nearly took him off his feet as he fell back into a sword thrust from Tasia, emerging through flames to run her blade through his side. Kabal bolted back into the fray and ran the old emperor around, scraping him across the walls like a ragdoll before coming back to the square and thrashing him against the ground. Bounced up into the air, he was plucked like a feather by molten hands again, and smashed face-first into a cobblestone pathway, leaving behind a man-sized crater. Taken again by ripping winds, the thug jettisoned the warlord into the other statues and then returned him to the square, standing him upright. He spun Kotal around in place like a cyclone, dizzying the warrior until he was fully disoriented, and Tasia delivered a subsequent roundhouse kick to the face, cracking his jaw like a hammer.

Forced around, the sun god felt a heel jab him in the gut and saw Jarek's smirking face as he suckerpunched the warrior's mouth. The Osh-Tekk reached for him, but Kabal returned and quickly forced his arm upward as his power burst out upwards into the sky towards nobody. The brown ninja hauled a punch into Kotal's ribs that fully cracked four, leaving the warrior gasping and wheezing for air for a short time, coughing blood to the ground as he fell forward onto his knees. He grit his teeth. That one hurt.. The warlord looked up at them and saw all four standing over him proudly, as though they were his superiors. Such arrogance he saw.

Slowly, he forced himself up to his feet, body beaten down and energy waning.

He took one step forward before wood smashed across his back and he screamed as his own macuahuitl splintered to pieces, broken over his own skin by an all too familiar face.

"Got ya, ya blue galah!" Kano said.

"I . . . am green, you imbecile . . ." he grumbled under his breath before passing out entirely.

"Oh, who gives a shit."

* * *

She lay in a cold, candlelit room, still as a corpse. Not too long ago, she still was one. The night was not calm; windy and restless. Harsh gusts crashed against her walls, rushing in through the open window to swarm her. Yet she did not stir. The winds raged for hours, the thunder rolling on and on for what seemed like days, to no avail. The storm could not shake her.

Only when the rains died down did she finally awaken.

It was a jarring return to the conscious world, for she had not simply been asleep. She had been dead for quite some time. This, however, was unknown to the razor-mouthed princess, for at that moment she could hardly recall her own name. Her world was unfocused and out of joint as she nearly fell from the bed she had been laid in. She stumbled about, holding onto the wall for support as the world kept spinning. The real world felt more like a fever-induced dream.

Where was she? What had happened? Why was she here? She struggled to recall her memories, but her scattered mind could only gather vague images. What was the last thing she remembered? She used all her concentration, while the world around her settled into place. Slowly but surely, the memories flowed in.

Her revolution had been a failure. She had been captured, and brought before Kotal kahn himself, but the scene was still fuzzy. She pressed harder, until her final memory emerged at last. A blurry image that became more and more repulsive with each recalled detail. A hideous, yellow faced abomination looking down on her, passing judgement she had no right to give. A truly despicable wretch.

"D'vorah . . ." Mileena spoke at last, seething hatred and fire.

She would have her revenge, against all of them. D'vorah, Kotal, Ermac, everyone that had dared to rise up against their rightful empress. Their time would surely come, but first she had to figure out where she was. She had been killed, that much she knew, but where was she now? She straightened herself out, headed for the door, and stepped outside.

Clearly she was in some sort of palace or castle. Exquisite, yet dusty and uncared for. It seemed it had been left to rot for quite some time. She wasn't sure what to expect, but she did not appear to be a prisoner. She had woken up in a bedroom, not a cell, and her room was unlocked. Whoever brought her here clearly meant her no harm. Mileena had still not entirely regained her mental faculties, otherwise she may have recognized her surroundings sooner. A nagging, familiar feeling fell on her as she wandered. She had certainly been here before, yet she couldn't quite place it.

She soon stumbled upon what could only be described as a throne room. Priceless treasures of all sorts littered the floors and walls, with a single, extravagant seat placed in the middle, yet at the moment it was vacant. Even with her in her compromised state of awareness, her whereabouts now offered no illusion. She knew exactly where she was.

"Ah, awake at last, I see. I was starting to wonder if something had gone wrong."

Mileena spun around to lay eyes on the dark sorcerer. No sooner did she think the name then did the man himself appear. The person responsible for her creation, and now, it seemed, responsible for her revival as well.

"Shang Tsung?" Mileena spoke his name, yet still couldn't believe it. She hardly recognized him in such a vibrant, youthful form. "How's this possible? You were killed, I know it."

"I suppose we have that in common, don't we?" Tsung said with a sly grin, though it quickly retreated. "How I came to be here is a long, arduous story. You've missed quite a lot since your untimely demise. We can speak more of it another time, although I'm not sure you'd believe the story even if I told you. I'm still not sure I entirely understand it myself."

"Fine, what do you want? You've . . . resurrected me somehow, that much is clear. Why?" Mileena, despite being born of dark magic, knew little of its intricacies.

"Is that not obvious?" Tsung asked, stepping closer.

"Do not play games with me, sorcerer. I am in no mood."

Shang Tsung studied her for a moment before responding. "Perhaps I was wrong to expect gratitude instead of suspicion. That's good, actually. Only fools accept gifts without question. You're wiser than I remember."

"Countless betrayals have taught me a few things. Everyone's loyalty is in question, no matter how esteemed. The only certainty is the painful, agonizing death of every craven cur who dares to cross me!"

"Yet just as hateful. Just as vicious, perhaps even more so." Shang Tsung added, continuing his thought. He stepped closer once more, now standing just a few feet away from his creation. "How delightful. Both qualities will be essential for your quest."

"If you expect me to be some damned servant, I swear I'll disembowel and devour you right here in your own throne room," Mileena threatened, baring her grotesque teeth. "Waking from the dead is hungry work, how would you like to be my first meal?"

"As pleasant as that sounds, I'm afraid I'll have to refuse," said Tsung, raising his hand in a calming gesture. "I did not bring you back to life to be my servant," the sorcerer made clear, for only an idiot would expect someone as proud as Mileena to serve anyone other than herself. Although, she would end up serving him in some manner of speaking.

"Then why?" Mileena again asked.

"Why, to help you reclaim your throne, of course."

For a moment, Mileena only stared at the sorcerer, letting his words sink in. Outside, the storm began to pick up once more, the thunder getting louder and the downpour more severe.

"Is that so?" Mileena asked, placing one hand on her hip in obvious suspicion.

"What other motive could I possibly have? You are the rightful heir, after all. Shao kahn's preferred successor. The only true claimant in a realm full of pretenders."

"You expect me to believe an Earthrealmer has any care in his heart for whether Outworld's ruler is legitimate or not? Don't play coy with me, sorcerer."

Tsung smirked, stepping away from the rightful empress and over to his own throne. He took his place on the stone chair, placing one leg on the other before returning his gaze to Mileena. "Of course, I expect the same power and position I enjoyed under your father in return for my support."

"Loyal service will always be rewarded."

"So, we have an accord?"

"I would be a fool to say no. I'm going to need all the help I can get against the usurper Kotal kahn. Just know one thing," Mileena said, standing before the sorcerer, his throne now cast in her shadow. "Serve under me, and I'll see that you're rewarded, but just because I'm not my father, don't think you can manipulate me. If there's even a hint of that, I'll kill you just as my father did, only this time, your death will be far, far more agonizing."

"Duly noted," Shang Tsung replied, wearing an eager grin. "Then are you ready to begin?"

Mileena merely nodded in agreement. "So, what's your plan? I assume you have one."

Before Shang could respond, the pair was interrupted by a surprise guest, or at least, a surprise to Mileena.

"Lord Tsung," came a feminine, vaguely familiar voice.

Mileena turned as the crimson colored woman stepped into view, her eyes widening.

"The mercenaries have arrived . . ." the woman's voice trailed off as she laid eyes on Mileena. "My liege . . . you're awake!" she gasped, quickly bending the knee.

"Skarlet? Is that you?" asked the disbelieving Mileena.

"Yes, my Queen. As Shao kahn's successor, I have pledged my undying loyalty to you. I will fight for your name until my last breath."

Mileena gaped for a minute longer, before turning back to the sorcerer. "I see you're just full of surprises."

"As much as I would love to take credit, this actually isn't my doing. Skarlet here is from the past," Shang Tsung replied.

"From the past? What're you blathering about?" Mileena asked, now even more confused.

"As I said before, I'll explain all of that another time," Shang Tsung assured her.

"Now that you've returned, we can depose your treacherous sister," said Skarlet. "She's tainted the throne with her presence for too long already."

"What did you just say?" Mileena demanded, blinking at the mention of Kitana. "My sister?"

Skarlet looked to Shang in question. "My lord, have you not told her?"

"I was getting to it," the sorcerer replied.

"My sister is the empress now? How's that possible?" Mileena demanded, turning back to face Tsung. "What has become of Kotal, then?"

She would not be denied her vengeance.

At that question, Tsung only grinned. Instead of answering, he turned to Skarlet. "Has the Black Dragon brought our queen's gift?"

"Yes, Lord Tsung," Skarlet answered with a smile of her own. "They have what you requested."

"Excellent. Have them bring it in."

"What're you two talking about?" Mileena asked, tired of being kept in the dark as Skarlet quickly made her exit.

Shang Tsung than rose from his chair, clasping both hands behind his back. "I have a gift for you. Call it a . . . demonstration of loyalty."

Mileena narrowed her eyes, remaining suspicious. This all seemed far too good to be true.

"This better not be some kind of trick, Tsung."

"I grant that your caution is warranted, but you must ask yourself, why would I bring you back just to simply kill you again?" Tsung reasoned.

It was a good question, one Mileena didn't have the answer for.

"Just wait until you see your present, your tone will change," Shang Tsung smiled, before looking off towards the entrance.

"I don't like surprises," Mileena stated, looking outwards as well.

"You'll like this one."

It wasn't long before Skarlet returned, only this time she had company. Kano, the leader of the Black Dragon, followed just behind her, and following behind him were four of his lackeys. She'd seen them before, but couldn't be bothered to remember most of their names. Kabal was the only one she recalled.

"Shite, what a whore of a storm that was," groaned Kano, sopping wet as he stepped inside. When he laid eyes on Mileena, he seemed to perk back up. "Well, well, finally done with your beauty sleep, princess?" he jeered, just as mocking as ever.

But Mileena paid him no mind, for there was one more visitor in tow. This one was clearly a prisoner, a bag over his head, with both hands bound behind his back, being forced to keep moving forward by Kano's mercenaries. His face may have been covered, but his enormous physique and bluish green skin meant his identity was of little mystery.

Kotal himself, the now former Kahn. Mileena could hardly believe her eyes. One of her most despised enemies, delivered at her feet. She shot a look to Tsung, who matching her look of a shock with a smug smile.

"I told you . . ."

"Here he is, as requested," Skarlet announced, spinning around to face the prisoner with a wide grin. "Ready for judgement." The eagerness in her words was nothing short of palpable.

"I know that voice," spoke the prisoner. "Do you wish to meet the same fate as your master, Skarlet? Release me now, and Kitana may yet show mercy."

"You should be far more concerned about your own fate, traitor. The time has come to pay the price for your disloyalty to our rightful queen, Mileena."

Kotal scoffed at that claim, "You do the bidding of a dead woman? That abomination was no true heir."

Mileena's eyes flared at the insult. The disrespect was unfathomable.

"Abomination, am I?" Mileena spoke at last, finally stepping forward to let her presence be known.

Kotal straightened out, every single bone in his body turning stiff as he heard the unmistakable voice. He could not see her, but it could be no one else.

"No, it can't be . . ."

Skarlet snatched the bag from atop Kotal's head and flung it aside, so that he may see the vengeful royal for himself. Kotal's face was painted with dread and shock, faced with a new, impossible reality.

Mileena had returned, and there would be hell to pay.

"You . . . but how are you . . . ?" His strained eyes jumped to the figure standing just beside Mileena.

Yet another face from the past, and one he certainly never wished to see again. He must have been brought forward from time as well. It was the only explanation.

"Shang Tsung, what have you done?" Kotal demanded, knowing he must be responsible.

"What I do best. Bringing your worst fears to life," the sorcerer said, taunting him.

"Put him on his knees!" Mileena commanded the mercenaries. They were just about to, when she had a second thought. "Wait, I have a better idea. Step away."

The mercenaries did as ordered, stepping back while Mileena revealed one of her sai, circling around the Osh-Tekk.

"I'll do it myself!"

Mileena lashed at Kotal's legs with her weapon, severing both hamstrings with one swift move. The old dictator winced, crumpling to his knees with a groan, blood already pooling from his wounds.

"Any final words, betrayer?" Mileena hissed, standing over the doomed former ruler.

"Enjoy this victory while you can, swine," Kotal cursed her, knowing his fate was sealed. "You command no respect, no charisma, no authority. You are nothing more than a failed experiment, brought to life by a mad witchdoctor! The citizens of Outworld will never follow you. Not again. You are hated, and you will always be hated. Do your worst, abomination."

Mileena bent over, one hand placed on her hip, her face mere inches from Kotal's. She tilted her head slightly, placing the other hand on the Osh-tekk's cheek, almost as if caressing it. Then, she grinned. Her mouth stretched even wider and more jagged than he thought possible, each and every razor-tipped tooth on full display, hungry for flesh.

"Gladly."

Weapon in hand, she swiped downward at his chest and sliced clean through his skin, stinging pain rending his eyes bloodshot, and a scream escaped his lips. Resting her weapon aside, she grasped the both sides of the wound and began to pull. She tore at his skin, ripping him apart, digging in deeper and deeper, until finally, with all her rage, she pried his chest open. There lay his beating heart. Hands soaked in iron, she clenched the old dictator's spirit in her clawed fingers and tore it from him bare, severing vital connections through sheer, unrestrained force. She stared at the organ, pulsing away in her hands, Kotal's breaths quickening before her and swiftly losing ground. She gave him a cheeky, mocking wink, before gnashing her teeth into the crimson morsel, chomping down on the soft tissue through pulmonary veins into arteric meat. He tasted rich and acidic, like steak cooked in wine.

Kotal let out one final groan as the last bit of light left his eyes. He slumped flat on his back, skin stained by his own blood.

Every bite was worth it. The valves were somewhat chewy and her jaw grew labored from chomping through thick ventricles, though she was well-accustomed to the heart's varying degrees of edibility. She licked the blood from her hands, savoring his death like a slave to their freedom. She spat out a loose flap of vena cava, teeth marks peppered through the flesh, though she didn't care to consume it.

"Don't dispose of his corpse just yet, I might come back for seconds," Mileena said, finishing off the last of her meal.

"Well, there goes my appetite . . . for the rest of my life," Kabal said, trying to keep his stomach.

"Well, now that Kotal has been . . . dealt with, we can move on to what comes next," Shang Tsung announced, stepping forward.

Mileena wiped her mouth clean, though her teeth were still coated in Kotal's blood. "What comes next is pure and utter domination. Mark my word, the revolution will not fail again. Those who stand with their rightful ruler will be greatly rewarded. Those who stand against me," Mileena gestured to the mess she had made before all of them. "Will suffer my eternal wrath," she announced, before donning her face mask.

"What shall our next move be, my Queen?" Skarlet asked, as servile as ever.

"We'll need more allies. Capable allies. Ones I can trust. Kano," MIleena said, turning to the mercenary. "Use your connections to track down Tanya. If she's still alive, I want her by my side."

"Tanya? Seems like a waste of time to me. We don't need that bloody turncoat."

"You'll do what I say, when I say it, mercenary!" Mileena hissed, pointing her Sai at his chest. "That is, if you want whatever Shang Tsung promised you."

"Fine, fine, don't get your royal panties in a bunch, princess," Kano relented. "We'll find your friend."

"That's not all. My vengeance is not yet complete. Find that wretched insectoid D'vorah, and bring me her putrid head." Mileena raged with murder in her eyes. "Make her suffer."

Kano grinned. "Now that's an order I can get behind, You sure you don't want her alive? So you can chew her up like Montezuma over here?" Kano asked, gesturing to the remains of the once great emperor.

"I've tried Kytinn before. Her kind taste repulsive."

Kano simply shrugged. "Fair enough. We'll squash that bug for you, and have fun doin' it."

"Retribution is only the beginning. Your subjects need to know you've returned, so that they may rally at your side," Tsung reminded Mileena.

"If I may make a suggestion," Skarlet began, drawing all eyes to the blood mage. "I believe I have the perfect statement to mark your return, my Queen."

"I'm listening," said Mileena, well aware of Skarlet's devious mind.

Without another word, Skarlet made her way over to the corpse of Kotal. She raised her hand, drawing the dead man's blood into her palm, forming a blade. Skarlet knelt down, looming over Kotal's upper half, carefully severing the sun god's head using his own blood. She then snatched up the dripping skull, and approached her queen, presenting the gruesome trophy with both hands and the cruelest of smiles.

"Your traitorous sister will be wondering what became of her dear friend. We should put her mind at ease."

Mileena gazed deeply into Kotal's cold, dead eyes. Once so commanding and filled with authority, now empty and black. She then looked past the usurper and onto Skarlet, her faithful servant, silently waiting for her ruler's thoughts. Mileena gave her a pleased nod.

"I knew there was a reason my father plucked you from the streets."


End file.
